The U.S. set a new record for powerful wind gusts, with 55 in one day
Winds peaked at 100 mph in Russell, Kansas, one of many places where existing wind records for December were obliterated, the National Weather Service said.
Environment
Powerful typhoon hits Philippines, nearly 100,000 evacuated
A powerful typhoon slammed into the southeastern Philippines on Thursday, prompting the evacuation of nearly 100,000 people. Officials say 10,000 villages lie in the projected path of the typhoon.
Thousands displaced from Oahu military base due to contamination in Navy water system
State health officials said samples from the Red Hill shaft contained petroleum levels 350 times the level considered safe. Some 3,000 military members and families were moved to temporary housing.
Volunteers are growing oyster gardens to help restore reefs
There are more than 1,000 oyster gardens in the coastal waters of Maryland, Virginia, Mississippi and Alabama as volunteers try to restore a keystone of coastal ecosystems.
A gloomy report card from the Arctic
NPR's Ari Shapiro talks with Twila Moon, co-editor of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's 2021 Arctic Report Card, which shows oceans warming and sea ice disappearing.
Most nations are promising to end deforestation, but skeptics want proof
More than a hundred countries just promised to protect and restore forests. Similar pledges in the past have not succeeded, but forest advocates hope that this effort can learn from past mistakes.
Megadrought is renewing debates about how to manage water in the arid American West
The Western megadrought is revealing a famed desert landscape long drowned by a controversial dam. It's raising questions about the future of this oasis, and water in the American West.
Fossil fuel subsidies are proving harder to end than first thought
President Biden campaigned on ending oil and gas industry subsidies. But getting rid of them requires passing legislation. A bill eliminating the overseas drilling subsidy is stalled in Congress.
Burning ban lifted for all North Carolina counties
A burning ban still in effect for 33 North Carolina counties in the wake of recent wildfires was lifted on Monday following weekend rainfall, officials said.
State official: Pilot Mountain fire has lessons about climate change and more
Most of Pilot Mountain State Park has reopened now that a wildfire that burned more than 1,000 acres has been contained.